Puerto Vallarta (PVDN) – On May 10, a person listed on the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) terrorist watch list was detained after crossing the northern border into the United States from Tijuana, Mexico, within a group of migrants.
The governor of Baja California, Marina del Pilar Ávila, confirmed the arrest to local media on Tuesday. She stated that while U.S. authorities had informed her of the arrest, neither the FBI nor Mexican immigration had provided her with specific details about the individual or their entry into Mexico.
“The National Institute of Migration (INM) should have a record of this Afghan individual if they used Mexican transportation infrastructure, such as airports or bus stations, to reach the border,” the governor commented.
Enrique Lucero, the Director of Attention to Migrants in Tijuana, confirmed that this is not the first time a person considered a threat has illegally crossed from Tijuana into the U.S. He added that such information is typically not shared by U.S. authorities due to security concerns.
Albert Rivera Colón, director of the Ágape Misión Mundial shelter, expects this incident to become a political issue. He believes it could provide the U.S. government with a rationale for enhancing border security. He highlighted the lack of cooperation, intelligence sharing, and information exchange between Mexico and the U.S., which has facilitated such border crossings.
He also mentioned the lack of international cooperation that has led to a surge in human trafficking or “polleros” in the region. “There is undoubtedly a large market for ‘polleros’, and efforts to counter them seem to be either feeble or ineffective,” he added.
Jim Desmond, Supervisor of San Diego County’s fifth district, confirmed the incident in a statement. He revealed that the Afghan individual was apprehended as part of a group of migrants, and upon detention, it was discovered he was on the terrorist watch list. He asserted that this arrest underscores the urgent need for President Joe Biden and the Federal Government to maintain robust border security.
U.S. authorities have yet to release additional information about the detained individual. It is speculated that they may have used the camp located between the border walls before the conclusion of Title 42, an emergency health measure that allowed for immediate expulsion of undocumented migrants under the guise of COVID-19 precautions. This rule imposed additional restrictions on asylum applications at the border and initiated deportations through another regulation known as Title 8.
Unlike Title 42, Title 8 allows migrants to request asylum upon arrival at the border. However, they must fulfill several requirements, such as having applied for asylum in the countries they’ve passed through; otherwise, they can face quick deportation.
